View Photo Gallery: Whitney Houston, who reigned as pop music’s queen until her majestic voice and regal image were tainted by drug use, erratic behavior and a tumultuous marriage to singer Bobby Brown, has died.

Among the annals of national anthems as a prelude to sporting events, few have topped the one delivered by Whitney Houston, who died Saturday, before Super Bowl XXV in 1991 in Tampa. Just a woman, her incredible voice and the bare minimum of extraneous notes.

Just classic. (Watch after the jump.)

Her rendition came at a particularly patriotic time, just after the onset of the Persian Gulf War, and was released as a single. It was re-released after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Houston donated all proceeds to charity. There was some controversy over whether she had pre-recorded the song, but it still ranks among the best all-time because of the circumstances and ... that voice..